These soft pumpkin sugar cookies are full of fall flavour. Soft and chewy with a cream cheese flavoured icing, you will never guess these cookies are gluten and dairy-free!
It's pumpkin spice season! Enter these deliciously cozy soft pumpkin sugar cookies. Inspired by Lofthouse and Crumbl cookies, these spicy soft-baked pumpkin cookies with a tangy cream cheese icing are a delicious fall treat. Not to mention they are gluten-free and dairy-free!
You'll be sure to impress guests, friends, or family when you present them with these allergy-friendly pumpkin cookies this fall. Keep reading to find out all of my tips and tricks for how to make them pumpkin-perfect!
Looking for more fall treats? Why not check out some of these:
- Gluten-Free Pumpkin Scones (Starbucks Copycat!)
- Healthier Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte
- Vegan Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
- Allergy-Friendly Halloween Dirt Cups
- Dairy-Free Vampire Bite Cupcakes
Jump to:
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Delicious bakery-quality sugar cookies. Minus the gluten and dairy. These cookies truly are better than store-bought! Think Lofthouse meets Crumbl Cookies meets pumpkin spice.
- Easy to make. Just mix, chill, shape, bake, ice, enjoy.
- Great for all ages. Kids and adults alike will devour these soft pumpkin sugar cookies, not to mention they are very allergy-friendly!
- Small batch recipe. Double if you’re serving a crowd!
Ingredients Needed
These soft sugar cookies contain very simple pantry ingredients. Here's what you'll need:
Cookie Ingredients
- (Vegan) butter: Use dairy-free or regular butter, whichever you prefer. Also use salted if possible. If not, add an additional ⅛ teaspoon salt.
- Coconut oil: The combination of oil and butter creates the super soft sugar cookie. Sub additional vegan butter if you cannot do coconut oil.
- Brown sugar: Brown sugar goes amazingly with fall flavours since it brings a deeper molasses note.
- Egg: Binds the cookies. This is pretty crucial for the texture and form of the cookies. Note that an egg replacement has not been tried.
- Pumpkin purée: Adds fall flavour and moisture to these cookies.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances all other flavours.
- Gluten-free all-purpose flour: My favourite is the Bob's Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour (blue bag). Ensure your mix contains xanthan gum.
- Almond flour: This also adds a lot of moisture, contributing to the signature soft texture of these sugar cookies. You can replace the almond flour with an equal amount of gluten-free all-purpose flour, but the cookies may not turn out as soft.
- Pumpkin pie spice: A good helping of spice gives these cookies fall flavour.
- Baking powder: Just a tiny bit is needed to give these cookies some rise and softness.
- Salt: Just a pinch enhances all other flavours.
Icing Ingredients
- (Vegan) butter: Use dairy-free or regular butter, whichever you prefer. Also use salted if possible. If not, add an additional pinch of salt.
- (Vegan) cream cheese: Use dairy-free or regular, whichever you prefer.
- Powdered sugar: Gives the icing some structure.
- Lemon juice: I like to add some lemon juice when using dairy-free cream cheese to give just a little more tang.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances the flavour.
- Salt: Just a pinch will balance out the sweetness.
Optional: Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with some additional cinnamon for a more spicy flavour. Just be careful to sprinkle lightly so you don't end up covering a cookie like the photo below. 😉
Step-by-Step Instructions
Be sure to read the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and instructions.
(1) Begin by placing the vegan butter and coconut oil in the bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl). Use the paddle attachment or a hand mixer to beat the two together for 2 minutes until lighter in colour. Then add the brown sugar and beat for another 2 minutes to cream together. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
(2) Once the sugar has dissolved, add the egg, pumpkin purée, and vanilla. Beat for another 2 minutes. The mixture will look slightly chunky.
(3) Mix in the gluten-free all-purpose flour, almond flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt. Beat until just incorporated with no dry spots. The cookie dough will be the consistency of a thick cake batter and be quite sticky.
(4) Place the cookie dough in a freezer safe bowl, cover, and freeze for 1 hour. This will make the dough easier to handle.
(5) Preheat the oven to 325°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the cookie dough from the freezer and use an ice cream scoop to scoop and shape 8 cookie dough balls. Place 4 on each baking sheet, spread apart. Press them down slightly into disks rather than balls.
(6) Bake for 20-22 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
(7) While the cookies are cooling, make the icing. Place the vegan butter and cream cheese in the bowl of the stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer) for 2 minutes until combined and light in colour. Add the icing sugar and mix, starting on low. Once roughly incorporated, add the rest of the icing ingredients and beat for 2-3 minutes until smooth and airy.
(8) Use a spoon or small scoop to place the icing on top of each cooled cookie. Use an offset spatula to spread the icing around the top of the cookie. Dust with cinnamon if you wish. Enjoy immediately or enjoy cold from the fridge.
Storage & Serving Instructions
Pumpkin sugar cookies are best kept in the fridge for 4-5 days. Serve cold directly from the fridge for best flavour. Cookies also pair extremely well with a nice hot Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte.
Freezing Instructions
Pumpkin sugar cookies can be frozen as dough or as baked cookies. To freeze the dough, remove the dough from the freezer after 1 hour, shape into balls, and return to the freezer in a safe, covered container. Keep for up to 2 months and bake as normal. They may take a few minutes longer.
To freeze baked cookies, place cookies on a baking sheet and flash freeze for 30 minutes. Then place cookies in a closed, freezer-safe container for 1-2 months. To thaw, place cookies in the fridge overnight and store in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Expert Tips
Here are some of my top tips and tricks for successful gluten-free pumpkin sugar cookies:
- Ensure all ingredients are at room temperature when making the dough. This will allow everything to incorporate properly. This includes the (vegan) butter, egg, pumpkin, cream cheese, etc.
- Don't skip chilling the dough. Seriously! The dough will be way too stick to handle without chilling it. Chilling the dough also helps the cookies hold their shape and not spread too much during baking, resulting in that nice soft texture.
- Store in the fridge. Like a chilled Crumbl cookie, these soft sugar cookies taste best from the fridge. Storing them there will also help them last longer—about 4-5 days. Cream cheese icing (even vegan) should never be stored outside of the fridge for long periods of time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope! That's why we are making our own at home, gluten-free, dairy-free, and much better for you.
The egg is integral in the binding of the cookie dough. You could try using an egg replacement like a flax egg or applesauce, although I have not tested the recipe this way. If you try it, leave a comment below and let me know how it was!
Out of the mixer, the cookie dough is very sticky. That is why it's recommended to chill the cookie dough for an hour before handling and shaping. Try dusting your hands with a bit of almond flour before shaping if you find the dough is sticking.
Cookies will be dry to the touch. They won't have much colour due to the low temperature and slow bake, but the edges should be firm and ever so slightly coloured. This is how you achieve the nice soft sugar cookie texture.
Pumpkin sugar cookies can be frozen as dough or as baked cookies.
To freeze the dough, remove the dough from the freezer after 1 hour, shape into balls, and return to the freezer in a safe, covered container. Keep for up to 2 months and bake as normal. They may take a few minutes longer.
To freeze baked cookies, place cookies on a baking sheet and flash freeze for 30 minutes. Then place cookies in a closed, freezer-safe container for 1-2 months. To thaw, place cookies in the fridge overnight and store in the fridge for 4-5 days.
These gluten-free and dairy-free soft pumpkin sugar cookies are sure to be a hit this fall. Whether it's for brunch, a coffee break, or dessert, whoever you serve these deliciously spicy cookies to are going to love them!
Have you made these gluten-free and dairy-free soft pumpkin sugar cookies? Be sure to leave a comment telling me how much you loved them, and tag me on instagram @livglutenfree! I hope you enjoy as much as I do!
More Fall Desserts You'll Love
Recipe
Gluten-Free Soft Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
Ingredients
Cookies
- ¼ cup (vegan) butter, softened use salted if possible. If not, add an additional ⅛ teaspoon salt.
- 2 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup + 2 tbsp brown sugar
- ⅓ cup pumpkin purée
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour with xanthan gum
- ½ cup almond flour
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Icing
- 2 tablespoon (vegan) butter, softened use salted if possible
- 2 tablespoon (vegan) cream cheese, softened
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Begin by placing the vegan butter and coconut oil in the bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl). Use the paddle attachment or a hand mixer to beat the two together for 2 minutes until lighter in colour. Then add the brown sugar and beat for another 2 minutes to cream together. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Once the sugar has dissolved, add the egg, pumpkin purée, and vanilla. Beat for another 2 minutes. The mixture will look slightly chunky.
- Mix in the gluten-free all-purpose flour, almond flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt. Beat until just incorporated with no dry spots. The cookie dough will be the consistency of a thick cake batter and be quite sticky. Place the cookie dough in a freezer safe bowl, cover, and freeze for 1 hour. This will make the dough easier to handle.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the cookie dough from the freezer and use an ice cream scoop to scoop and shape 8 cookie dough balls. Place 4 on each baking sheet, spread apart. Press them down slightly into disks rather than balls. Bake for 20-22 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- While the cookies are cooling, make the icing. Place the vegan butter and cream cheese in the bowl of the stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer) for 2 minutes until combined and light in colour. Add the icing sugar and mix, starting on low. Once roughly incorporated, add the rest of the icing ingredients and beat for 2-3 minutes until smooth and airy.
- Use a spoon or small scoop to place the icing on top of each cooled cookie. Use an offset spatula to spread the icing around the top of the cookie. Dust with cinnamon if you wish. Enjoy immediately or enjoy cold from the fridge.
Let us know what you think!